Municipal hospital projects see limited progress in Rukum

Jayaman Budha Magar,Rukum (East), July 16: Three years ago, the local units in Rukum (East) of Sudurpaschim Province started laying foundations for hospitals as per the ambitious plan of the federal government to set up a hospital in each local unit nationwide. However, progress on the federal project has been limited in most local units of the districts. 

The government in the annual budget for the fiscal year 2019/20 had announced plan to construct one hospital each in all 753 local units of the country. 

During this three-year span, certain local units have commenced construction of 5-bed hospital in the initial phase, while construction efforts in other local units have come to a halt, with some even encountering legal challenges.

Three rural municipalities of the district have laid foundations for the 5-bed hospital. However, except for Bhume Rural Municipality, the construction work of the hospital buildings in Puthauttarganga Rural Municipality and Sisne Rural Municipality has been halted. 

In the fiscal year 2019/20, the federal government allocated a budget of Rs.60 million for the construction of hospitals in three rural municipalities within the district.

In the following years, the budget allocated to the municipalities where the construction work could not progress has been gradually reduced.

The construction of a municipal hospital is currently underway in Chunbang-9 of Bhume. However, the progress of the hospital construction has come to a halt in Naigad-2 of Sisne and Talosera-11 of Puthauttarganga.

According to Samir Giri, the Acting Chief Administrative Officer of the Rural Municipality, the construction service documents chosen for the construction project in Puthauttarganga were found to be fraudulent. As a result, a complaint was lodged with the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority. 

The complaint alleges that the documents associated with the construction service selected for the project are fraudulent, he added, 

He explained that the construction of the hospital has been impacted as the case regarding the alleged fraudulent documents has not yet been resolved.

Considering the legal dispute involving Sisne Mission-Dhulikhel JV, the construction company originally chosen for the project, there is a high possibility that the hospital construction process will be restarted by initiating a new tender process, added Giri. 

Likewise, Karna Bahadur KC, an engineer from the rural municipality, informed that the construction of the municipal hospital in Naigad-2 of Sisne has also come to a halt.

The task of constructing the hospital building was assigned to Kunwar Depolux Construction Services. However, up until now, the construction company has only managed to complete the foundation preparation for the building construction.

KC said the contractor is presently out of contact, citing various excuses, including logistical challenges in transporting construction materials due to geographical difficulties.

He added that despite the municipality's repeated requests to resume the construction work through official letters, the contractor remained non-compliant and did not adhere to the requests made by the municipality.

The given deadline for the completion of the hospital construction is set for mid-January of the upcoming year, KC added. 

Similarly, Upendra Yadav, the coordinator of the health branch of the rural municipality, informed that around 70 percent of the hospital construction work has been completed in Bhume Rural Municipality.

Stating that the construction work in the rural municipality has been entrusted to Revit Prakriti Construction Service, he said the structural framework for the five-bed hospital building has been prepared.

Nandaraj Thapa, the sub-contractor of the construction company, said only the plaster, decoration of the hospital premises, and installation of windows and doors remained to be completed. 

The construction of a municipal hospital in the rural municipality is underway with a budget of Rs. 84 million. 

As part of the initial phase, it has been announced that five-bed hospitals will be set up in all municipalities, with plans for future expansion to 15-bed hospitals. On November 30, 2020, the foundation stone for the construction of these hospitals was ceremonially laid simultaneously in all three municipalities.